18 2.2 Comprehensive Primary Care

Caring for Older Adults

Over the next 20 years, Canada’s seniors population, those age 65 and older, is expected to grow by 68%. The subset of seniors age 75 and older, is growing the fastest pace. Studies have shown that 91% of long-term care residents are over age 65, and 74% are over age 80.

Comprehensive primary care in LTC includes:

• Primary prevention
• Immunizations
• Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment
• Chronic disease management
• Goals of Care/End of Life planning^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA): A multidisciplinary diagnostic and treatment process that identifies medical, psychosocial, and functional capabilities of an older adult in order to develop a coordinated plan to maximize overall health with aging.

Includes:

• Medical
• Function Assessment
• Psychological Assessment
• Social^[6][7][8][9]

Caregiver Burden:

• One in four Canadians is a caregiver; one in two will become one
• Caregivers spend 5.7 billion hours caring for people in their lives (4.2% of GDP) valued at$97.1B annually
• $1.3B is lost in productivity per year. This is equivalent to over half a million employees dropping out of the labour force.
• 26% of those caring for older adults and 45% of those caring for people with dementia note distress
• Studies show this distress does not fully resolve on LTC placement

What to do:

• Educate
• Support
• Refer^{[10][11][12][13]}